When Predator Instincts Take Over
by ShiniSurprise
Summary: Captain Amelia finds a little "stow away" on her ship, and goes ballistic.


It was a beautiful night aboard the R.L.S Legacy, perfect for sailing the galaxy in search of a planet that held a loot which was sure to make all of their wildest dreams come true. Finding Treasure Planet meant that Jim and his mother could rebuild the Benbow Inn more than fifty times larger than it had been before it burned to the ground, Doctor Doppler could buy more than a few new impressive additions for his observatory, and Amelia would be set to pay off all debts and any additions or repairs made to the Legacy for, well, the rest of her life. Speaking of Amelia, what was our beloved feline commander up to at this hour?

"Where is it?" Came a feral growl from the Captain's quarters that could be heard all the way from the galley. "Blasted little devil! Where is it!" The Captain snarled as she rummaged through drawers, cabinets, piles of laundry and stacks of papers. Cups of China glass and other forms of dishware were shattered across the polished wooden floor, accompanied by torn documents, folders, maps, and other various items. Her short red locks were strewn over her face, disheveled and sticking out at odd angles. The feline-sapien growled again, her nebula green eyes narrowed in clear annoyance, "Mischievous little-"

"Captain?" Came a familiar, deep voice from behind her door, interrupting her from...whatever she was doing. Not even bothering to take the time to compose herself, she called back, "What is it?" The door to her chambers then opened to reveal her first officer, Mr. Arrow, who stepped into the room and became completely shocked and perplexed about the situation as he looked at the mess she'd made. "Is everything all right?" He asked after a few moments of awkward silence. The Captain cast him a quick glance from her position - knelt down at the side of her bed so that she could look under it. "Everything's fine." She murmured before her eyes went back to scanning through the darkness. Arrow simply stood there, left utterly confused as he watched her. Whatever she was doing, she certainly seemed diligent in her task.

"Pardon me, Captain, but...what exactly are you doing?" He finally managed to ask. The woman gave a small sigh of frustration and stood up, recovering her posture and straightening her outfit, "I'm looking for a stow-away." She replied, looking back at him with a serious expression. "A stow-away?" Arrow blinked before looking around, "In here?"

"Yes, in here. Now, if you don't mind, I would appreciate it if you let me continue my search." She said firmly, narrowing her eyes sternly. When he only continued to stand there, staring at her as if she'd lost her mind, she gave a low growl, "Now, Mr. Arrow." And that was a command he was certainly not going to argue with, "Aye, Captain." The first officer quickly turned on his heel and made way for the exit, leaving her to go back to her quest to find this "stow-away". She bared her teeth in anger as she practically destroyed her quarters, still having no success in her activity before she suddenly looked up and froze, her eyes locking onto her target as it finally came into view. "There you are." She purred, a wicked smirk crossing her lips.

Sitting upon the sill of her window, cleaning its face with its paws, was a small white mouse with black beady eyes and an adorable pink nose. It paused to look up at the felid as she slowly made her way over to where it sat. "Easy, little rodent. Don't be afraid; I'm not going to hurt you," the Captain cooed in a mock-gentle voice, her claws flexing as she inched closer, her mouth starting to water. "I just want to have a nice little chat...and put you on my dinner plate!" With that last part of the sentence, Amelia launched herself toward the mouse, fangs bared, claws extended. She was only a split-second away from her prize before it suddenly bounced off of its hind legs, off of the window sill, and sped off across the floor. As a result from her leap, the Captain crashed face first into her window. That was going to leave a mark, and I'm not talking about on the glass. Giving an angry hiss, the woman whipped her head around in time to spot the mouse before it could find another hiding place and scrambled up from the floor, where she then began to chase the mouse on all fours.

"Come here, you little pest!" She snarled, gaining speed and inching closer to the rodent. She was just close enough to extend a paw and capture it before it suddenly disappeared through the gap beneath her door, leaving her to collide with the door-once again, face first-due to lack of paying attention to where she was going. "...Ow." Shaking it off, she growled and reached an arm up to turn the knob and swing the door open. Her nebula green eyes quickly locked onto the mouse, which was scampering down the chamber hall and off toward the stair case that led out onto the deck. Giving a vicious yowl, she sprang in hot pursuit on all fours again, ears pressed flat against her head, fangs bared in a complete predatory expression.

She followed the mouse down the stairs and onto the deck, despite the fact that the rest of the crew, not counting Jim and Silver-they had taken one of the long boats out for a joyride-were out tending to their labors. They stopped due to the commotion that had just taken place, and could do nothing but stare as the chase ensued across the wooden floorboards. The Captain ignored the onlookers, refusing to lose sight of the rodent, and accelerated her pace, inching closer to her target once more. This time, just as she was about to seize it, it suddenly dove for the steel cross-barred window that lay between the deck and the galley, and it slipped through one of the holes, into the chamber below. "Blast it!" Amelia hissed as she lunged an arm through the hole in a vain attempt to catch the mouse before it escaped.

It was then that she looked up to meet the eyes of her crew, who were all speechless, watching her with blank and confused expressions. "What are you fools just standing there for?" She growled, "Get back to your work! Didn't anyone ever teach you that it's rude to stare?" The crew blinked and exchanged glances, mumbling things under their breath before they simply continued their tasks. The Captain grunted and began slinking off toward the entrance to the galley, descending the stairs and disappearing into the shadows. "Here, mousey, mousey, mousey~" Her eyes glowed through the darkness, scanning the area as she lurked around. She froze as her ears picked up the sound of pitter-pattering feet. Growling lowly, she stalked the sound over to one of the further corners of the chamber, and sure enough, with her nocturnal vision, she located her target, sitting on its haunches and cleaning its face once more.

Smirking, the feline made not a single noise as she approached it, itching to sink her claws into it and to feast upon it. She salivated at the mere thought of the delicate white fur, the taste, the tender and juicy meat. The mouse stopped abruptly and stared in her general direction, ears perked up, and she did as well. She held her breath as its nose wrinkled, whiskers tilting this way and that as it sniffed the air. With a sharp squeak, it took off toward the other side of the room. Hissing, the Captain lunged for it, missing it by an inch, before springing into a chase once again. She remained hot on its trail, swiping her claws each time she got close enough, but the mouse would find some way to dodge, whether it be ducking or leaping or abruptly shifting directions.

She followed it all the way to the engine room, the generator and additional machines giving an occasional screech as they worked. "Give it up already!" She snarled, "You'll never make it off of this vessel alive!" Eventually, the chase led all the way to the very back of the narrow chamber. There, the rodent found itself skidding to a halt, facing a dead end - now trapped between a wall and a crazy cat lady who wanted to eat it. It whipped around to face its aggressor, who was now towering over it, baring her fangs in a wicked grin, eyes narrowed dangerously as she purred, "Hello, my adorable little appetizer. I have a question for you." Extending a set of claws, she wrapped her fingers around the trembling creature and lifted it to her eye-level.

"How would you like to be cooked? Fried, steamed, or grilled?" A low, menacing laugh escaped her throat as she licked her chops. "Or perhaps I should go ahead and eat you _raw_." She squeezed the struggling mouse, cutting off its air supply, beginning to suffocate it as she stood up. "You have my deepest apologies, friend. But this is the natural order of the universe, and when it comes to a fine specimen of breeds such as myself and a weak, defenseless little morsel like you, you're just going to have to accept the fact that you're at the bottom of the food chain." With that, she turned the creature over in her hand and held it in the air by its tail, just above her open, awaiting mouth.

"Captain! What in the name of Flint are you doing!" Came an all too familiar voice from behind her, and she paused in her preparation of chowing down to whip her head around, finding none other than Dr. Doppler Delbert staring at her in utter horror. "Doctor... Uh... I was just-"

"About to devour this undeniably cute, innocent little creation of Mother Nature! I'm appalled!" The canine said firmly as he reached out and plucked the poor mouse from Amelia's grip, holding it gently in his palm and stroking his back with his index finger. The Captain only stared as he made cooing and kissy-faces at it before he glared at her again. "You're despicable. How do you live with yourself?" He then turned his back on her with a huff, and marched off, back up the stairs to the deck, mouse-in-tow. The creature's little white face peered around to look at the felid one last time, and she could swear she heard little squeaks of laughter before Delbert disappeared above the steps.

"I'm a disgrace, I know." She murmured in an unheard reply before sighing and dragging her feet back to her quarters to sulk for the rest of the night. Not only was she without a delicious little appetizing rodent, but she was left with the task of single-handedly cleaning up the destruction she'd made in vain.


End file.
